


What Once Was

by haders



Series: Reddie Fix Its [2]
Category: IT (Movies - Muschietti)
Genre: Descriptions of Blood, Eddie Kaspbrak Lives, M/M, Reddie, Richie Tozier Loves Eddie Kaspbrak
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-18
Updated: 2020-01-18
Packaged: 2021-02-27 11:54:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,279
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22296661
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/haders/pseuds/haders
Summary: “Do you hear me, asshole? We fucking did it! Why are you crying? Those better be tears of fucking joy, Tozier.”“Yeah, yeah, I hear you, you insensitive fuck,” Richie threw back with no bite. “Just let me cry in peace, Jesus, fuck.”Another fix-it for the ending of It Chapter 2. Eddie doesn't die, you fucks.
Relationships: Eddie Kaspbrak & Richie Tozier, Eddie Kaspbrak/Richie Tozier
Series: Reddie Fix Its [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1604941
Comments: 6
Kudos: 254





	What Once Was

**Author's Note:**

> Another fix-it for that terrible end of It. Titled after the song by Her's.

“Richie! Hey, Rich!” He furiously blinked the blinding light from his gaze to focus on Eddie hovering over him. “There he is! Hey, man! I think I killed It! I think I—”

A large claw extended from It’s limb and speared through Eddie’s abdomen. Just like Richie saw in the deadlights. Richie gasped, grabbing at Eddie reflexively. Eddie grappled his hands to cling onto Richie. 

“This isn’t real, this isn’t real,” Richie chanted, closing his eyes tightly. He tried to tune out the screams of the others. He continued to chant as he opened his eyes to see the claw twist inside Eddie’s abdomen as a freakish cackle echoed among the walls around them. 

The laugh was cut off by a blood curdling scream when one of the losers took to chopping the limb from It’s pseudo-spider form. That seemed to take It’s attention off them for the time being. Eddie dropped to his knees, eyes glazing over, coughing up blood. Richie sat up and grabbed his best friend by the shoulders.

“Eddie, this isn’t real. You have to believe it isn’t real,” he begged. 

“No, Rich, this is it,” Eddie cried, his body trembling. 

“Shut the fuck up,” Richie sobbed, squeezing his shoulders. He took one hand to Eddie’s cheek and drew his gaze to him. “You _have_ to believe this isn’t real. That’s the only way you can save yourself. Please, Eddie. This isn’t real.” 

“Sure feels fucking real, Rich,” Eddie gasped, coughing up more blood. Richie felt the warm blood hit his cheek and he shook his head furiously, eyes still closed. 

“Shut the fuck up!” Richie bellowed. “None of this is real! The leper, that wasn’t real! The Pomeranian demon dog? That wasn’t real. Neither is this. This stupid fucking clown isn’t real, Eddie. It’s our fucking nightmares playing out in front of us. Nothing but a nightmare. Wake up.”

Eddie winced and shook his head, hands grasping onto Richie’s forearms and gripping tight. “I can’t,” he choked out. “ _Fuck—_ hurts—”

“I know, buddy, I know it does,” Richie nodded furiously. “But you are so fucking brave, Eddie. So fucking brave. You gotta do this one last brave thing. For me. _Please_.”

“Didn’t work,” Eddie replied with a wheeze. “I believed I killed It and that didn’t—”

“We gotta get you out of here.”

Ben and Bill appeared on either side of them, gripping Eddie by the elbows and slowly lifting him up. They slowly dragged him to an open cavern, far enough away from the chaos. Soon enough Bev and Mike were ducking in alongside them as It clawed at the entrance, bellowing: “Come out and play, Losers!”

“This isn’t real,” Richie kept muttering, kneeling in front of Eddie, who was leaning awkwardly against the rock with the claw still lodged inside him, which was stopping some of the bleeding at least.

“Richie, I’m sorry,” Eddie choked, grabbing his wrist and tugging him closer to hear him.

“Don’t you dare say goodbye to me, you fuck,” Richie grunted, turning to look at everyone hovering around him. He locked eyes with Bill and the memories from Neibolt, from the _Not scary at all, Scary, and Very Scary_ doors came back to him. The image of a woman amputated from the waist down hanging and screaming for her shoes. Opening the door again and she was gone.

“Bill!” Bill immediately stepped forward, kneeling next to Richie to help. “It isn’t real. Like the rooms. At the fucking house. The missing poster wasn’t real, right? So this isn’t real. The woman hanging from the ceiling wasn’t real. You said that, you convinced me and then she disappeared!”

Bill’s eyes widened and he nodded slowly, understanding where Richie was headed. He turned to Eddie and grabbed his shoulder. 

“It’s fucking outside this cave right now, you assholes!” Eddie burst, starting to hyperventilate. “It’s fucking real, all right?” 

“Close your eyes, Eds,” Richie begged. He watched Eddie struggle, but eventually he closed his eyes. He turned to the rest of the losers. “All of you, close your fucking eyes. Now, I mean it.” They came around to kneel by Richie, Bill, and Eddie, ducking their heads and closing their eyes. 

It continued to claw at the opening of the cavern, squealing and grunting in frustration. “No fun! No fair! Come out and play with me!”

“This isn’t real,” Richie whispered, hands resting over Eddie’s ears to block out some of the noise. “This isn’t real. The Paul Bunyan statue that came to life wasn’t real.”

“It isn’t real,” Bev added. “Just a weak old woman.”

“A l-leper,” Eddie choked. 

“A clown,” Ben murmured. 

“A bully,” Mike added.

Suddenly the pounding on the cave stopped. Richie closed his eyes tighter. “Keep going.”

“A m-m-mimic,” Bill said a bit louder. Someone grabbed Richie’s shoulder and gave it a squeeze.

“A mummy,” Ben added.

“Just a dumb fucking clown,” Richie said.

“A clown,” Mike and Bev agreed. 

It was eerily quiet for a minute or so before Eddie gasped and lurched forward, forehead hitting Richie’s full force. 

“Ow, fuck. Eddie? Eds!?” Richie’s eyes opened to see Eddie hands shaking as he furiously grabbed at his abdomen, which was now missing the claw. The wound was sealed, much like Ben’s carved stomach was once Bev broke the mirror that It resided in. Blood still stained the front of his shirt and remained on his chin, but there was no evidence of where it came from. 

“Eddie?” Richie sobbed.

“It worked,” Mike said in awe behind him. The losers simultaneously lunged at Eddie, embracing their friend, who choked out a delirious laugh and shuddered.

“Holy fuck, holy _fuck_ ,” Eddie whispered over and over. “It isn’t real. Jesus, fuck, you were right. It isn’t real.”

“Thank _fuck_ ,” Richie groaned, still clinging to Eddie as the losers loosen their grip and stand up. He vaguely hears Bill and Mike start to climb up the cavern steps to check if it is safe, see where the fuck that demon space clown went, but Richie couldn’t care less. Eddie was alive. Eddie was safe. Holy shit. 

He pulled back just enough to cup Eddie’s cheeks in his hands, lean his forehead against his, and weep. “Thought I lost you,” he confessed.

“Can’t get rid of me that easy,” Eddie smiled and huffed out a laugh. His hand came up to rest over Richie’s on his right cheek.

“Guys? Get out h-h-here,” Bill called from outside the cavern, which was still silent. 

Ben and Bev went first, Richie grabbed Eddie’s hands and pulled him up carefully, but didn’t let go of his hand as they made their way to the others. There, lying in the middle of them was It, deflated like a balloon, groaning pathetically, voice sounding like it sucked in helium, weak and cowardice. “I’m the eater of worlds,” It kept repeating pathetically.

Mike moved first, stepping forward and reaching his hand in the chest of what was left of the demonic creature. It was startlingly easy for him to reach in and pull away a besting heart. All the losers could feel that beat in their own veins, vibrating their own pulse, manipulating their own heartbeat rhythm as if It still had control over them. 

“Eat this, asshole,” Richie said, putting his hand over Mike’s and squeezing. It reached out a desperate hand and yelped, _No!_

The rest of the losers quickly joined in, putting their hands around the organ and squeezing. They could feel the hold It had on them slowly dissipating, filtering out of their bloodstream, easing the tension from their worlds as they listened to the whimpering of the dying creature quiet to nothing. 

—

Outside of house on Neibolt, they watched the rubble settle, the structure collapse, and inside it the memories, too. The torture was over. The nightmare of Derry was finally buried six feet underground in hell where it belonged. Richie’s eyes glazed over out of focus as he watched the dust settle. He felt a hand slip into his own and squeeze, tugging him toward the rest of the group as they made their way to the quarry; he didn’t let go of Eddie’s hand.

He furiously scrubbed at his glasses in the water. Eddie’s blood still stained the front of them, ground into the crack on his left lens. He dug his nail into the crack to scratch the stain out. He almost lost him. Almost lost the only person that ever really mattered to him. He almost fucking lost him today and tomorrow they will all leave Derry and he will lose him again. He started to hyperventilate. 

“Rich?” Eddie’s voice pulled him out of his panic. He put a hand on his shoulder and gave it a reassuring squeeze, seeming to understand what state he was in. “Richie, hey. _Hey,_ listen to me, all right? We did it, man!” 

Richie huffed out a laugh, choking back more tears. “Yeah.”

“We _did it_. We killed Pennywise. We did it, man,” Eddie continued, his hand now rubbing his shoulders. Richie nodded and ducked his head, not able to look Eddie in the eye. “Do you hear me, asshole? We fucking did it! Why are you crying? Those better be tears of fucking joy, Tozier.”

“Yeah, yeah, I hear you, you insensitive fuck,” Richie threw back with no bite. “Just let me cry in peace, Jesus, fuck.”

Eddie laughed and god, if that wasn’t the best sound in the whole world. “Nah, you saved my life back there. You’re stuck with me. For life,” Eddie protested, patting his back and swimming in front of him, ducking low to try and meet Richie’s gaze. 

“D-did save your life,” Richie hiccuped through a sob, smiling weakly and lifting his face a bit for Eddie to see him a bit easier. 

“So what’s with the waterworks, Rich?” Eddie asked with a smirk. “I would expect you to be rubbing the hero complex in my face at this point!” 

Richie slid his glasses back on his face, seeing Eddie in focus despite the water droplets impeding his vision. “Huh-yeah,” he replied, hands shaking as he reached out to grab Eddie’s forearm, which was still outstretched toward him. He grabbed and squeezed, leaning his cheek against his best friend’s arm. He swallowed hard and took the leap. “Hey, Eds, I have to tell you something.”

Eddie smiled wholeheartedly, glad to see his friend settle a bit. “Yeah, go ahead. Go for it,” he continued to smile and god, it was beautiful. 

Richie inhaled deeply and shuddered out the exhale, moving his cheek from his arm, grabbing Eddie’s hand off his shoulder and holding it in front of him in his lap. He looked down at their hands as Eddie intertwined their fingers, never wanting to let go. 

“I love you.”

Eddie hummed and squeezed Richie’s hand. “Love you, too, Rich,” he replied easily. Richie shook his head.

“I’m _in love_ with you,” he corrected, his grip tensing on Eddie’s hand. He forced himself to glance up and catch Eddie’s widened eyes. He panicked. “I—you don’t have to say anything. I know, you’re— well… I just don’t want to leave Derry and not have you in my life. Even if we’re friends, I can deal. I can get over it, maybe—”

“Richie…” Eddie whispered. 

“Actually, I don’t think I will ever not be in love with you. I think I’ve loved you since we were kids, Eds. Like as soon as I could even like a person. I’ve always wanted you to be happy. Really fucking happy and that doesn’t have to be with—”

“Richie, shut up,” Eddie murmured with a fond smile. 

“No, let me just get this out,” Richie argued, eyes squinting in frustration.

“No,” Eddie argued back, firmly. He launched himself forward to crash his lips against Richie’s. Richie’s back hit the surface from the impact and suddenly they were under water. Eddie grabbed at Richie’s shirt, pulling him close. The kiss was firm, chaste, but _fucking incredible_. When Richie’s brain came back online, he was kissing back, grabbing Eddie’s face and holding him close. 

When they came up for air, Richie sputtered and looked up at Eddie, who was grinning back at him. “Finally figured out a way to shut you up,” he teased and Richie continued to stare in shock. 

“Uh, guys?” Ben called. From over Eddie’s shoulder, Richie could see all the losers watching them curiously. Oh yeah…

Eddie ignored them, hugged Richie around the shoulder, hanging off him, using his friend to hold him above water. They stared at each other for a beat, Richie’s hands went to his waist, keeping him steady as Eddie’s legs wrapped around his hips. He turned his head to brush his lips against Richie’s ear, whispering, “I fucking love you, Richie Tozier.”

Richie choked and groaned, shuddering. “Fuck, I think I just came.” 

Eddie splashed him in the face, laughing as he pressed his forehead to Richie’s. 

“What’s going on over there?” Now Bev was curious. Richie closed his eyes and leaned into Eddie, whining as he pulled away. 

“Confessing my undying love over here, do you mind?” Eddie called in the most Richie way possible. 

“Nosy shitheads,” Richie added with a smirk, hands clinging to Eddie’s waist and pulling him back. 

“What?!” Bill yelled in shock. _Poor Billy. So naive. So aloof._

“I fucking love you, Richie Tozier!” Eddie lifted his head up and yelled to the sky. As he lowered his gaze, he raised an eyebrow in challenge. _Game on._

“I fucking love you, Eddie Kaspbrak!” Richie yelled to the sky. Eddie laughed before wrestling him back under the water. 


End file.
